Photo courtesy of Crowther Roofing & Sheet Metal of Florida Inc., Fort Myers
Photo courtesy of Crowther Roofing & Sheet Metal of Florida Inc., Fort Myers
Photo courtesy of Crowther Roofing & Sheet Metal of Florida Inc., Fort Myers
Ave Maria, Fla., is a new community that was developed in conjunction with Ave Maria University, the first Roman Catholic university developed in the U.S. in more than 40 years. The town was founded in 2007.
Ave Maria was designed to be a compact, self-sustaining town that reflects the community's rural roots and offers its residents a full range of residential and commercial services.
Ave Maria was developed through a partnership between Barron Collier Cos., Naples, Fla., a real estate company; Pulte Homes, Bloomfield Hills, Mich., a large home building company; and Thomas S. Monaghan, founder and chancellor of Ave Maria University (as well as founder of Domino's Pizza and former owner of the Detroit Tigers), who donated more than $250 million to the university.
"For several years, there had been much publicity about this project," says Roger Smith, vice president of Crowther Roofing & Sheet Metal of Florida Inc., Fort Myers, who began providing budget pricing and design options for Ave Maria in 2004.
"After two years of planning, we were awarded contracts for the university, town center buildings and service facilities," Smith says.
The town
Ave Maria encompasses about 5,000 acres of what was once agricultural land. Nearly 20 percent of this space is designated for the university's campus and future growth. An oratory sits at the town's center.
The town also has two commercial centers that will provide shopping, entertainment and dining when fully operational. There is an on-site fire/sheriff/emergency medical services building, as well. The town also includes a K-12 parochial school and a network of parks and recreational areas. About 45 percent of the town's land has been devoted to lakes and open space.
The town's first phase, which includes housing and commercial areas, is now operational. When completed, Ave Maria will include about 11,000 residential homes.
Extensive work
Crowther Roofing & Sheet Metal of Florida began roofing its first building at Ave Maria in May 2006.
"We worked with four general contractors and four architects to install roof systems on 30 buildings with 131 roof areas," Smith says.
Crowther Roofing & Sheet Metal of Florida installed 144,000 square feet of Siplast lightweight insulating concrete and two-ply polymer-modified bitumen on various buildings, including a science/math technology building, student activity center, library, three undergraduate housing buildings and six town center buildings. Additionally, the company installed 90,000 square feet of Entegra Roof Tile on the six town center buildings and carports, among other buildings.
"We installed four styles of tile in 10 colors—it ended up being 19 tile combinations," Smith says.
Crowther Roofing & Sheet Metal of Florida also installed 120,000 square feet of Firestone Building Products Co. LLC's standing-seam metal and double-lock standing-seam copper roofing, which includes 90 tons of copper.
"Our work encompassed about 354,000 square feet of roofing," Smith says. "At the project's height, we had crews working on multiple buildings with a work force of more than 150 men and women working seven days a week."
Extra care
According to Smith, the Ave Maria community was the U.S.'s largest construction project during 2006. As such, there were a number of special precautions that needed to be taken during work on the various buildings.
"In addition to our 150 employees, there were more than 1,500 other workers on this project," Smith says. "This called for planning for parking, meals and bathroom facilities."
Crowther Roofing & Sheet Metal of Florida had an on-site storage trailer for its trucks and equipment, as well as an on-site office trailer. Additionally, extra care needed to be taken with safety requirements.
"Ave Maria's owners had their own insurance and safety program, which went above and beyond the Occupational Safety and Health Administration's standards," Smith says.
There also were some complications getting materials needed for the extensive project.
"Getting materials delivered in a timely fashion was a challenge because of the demand for roofing materials caused by recent hurricanes in southwest Florida," Smith says. "However, through extreme persistence, all inventory requirements were met, keeping the project on schedule and on budget."
More to come
Crowther Roofing & Sheet Metal of Florida completed work at Ave Maria in May 2007.
"Work was completed in 12 months, on budget and ahead of schedule with no lost time or accidents," Smith says.
And Crowther Roofing & Sheet Metal of Florida's work was appreciated.
"We were recognized as the 'go-to' contractor, and on several occasions, we were asked to provide assistance outside the realm of specific roofing job functions," Smith says. "And we are now working on Ave Maria's next phase."
Ashley St. John is Professional Roofing's associate editor.
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